Shocking Footage of Cops Fatally Shooting Unarmed Man Released

The shooting occurred in 2013. Cops approached three men who they believed may have stolen some bikes. The officers ordered the men to keep their hands in the air, but the victim, Ricardo Diaz Zeferino, appeared confused and moved his arms, walked back and forth and took off his hat before cops fired on him, killing him.

Diaz Zeferino, as well as one other man who was injured by the gunfire, fell to the ground.

The city of Gardena fought not to have the video go public, but the judge denied the argument, claiming there was interest:

[The] “defendants' argument backfires here -- the fact that they spent the city's money, presumably derived from taxes, only strengthens the public's interest in seeing the videos. Moreover, while the videos are potentially upsetting and disturbing because of the events they depict, they are not overly gory or graphic in a way that would make them a vehicle for improper purposes."

The city had settled a lawsuit over the matter for $4.7 million. Gardena did not want the video released, stating it would cause people to "rush to judgment" about how the cops in question acted.

Diaz Zeferino was reportedly shot eight times and as he lay dying, cried out in Spanish, "This is the end of me." An autopsy later discovered he had meth in his system at the time of his death.